PayPal agrees $2.2 billion deal for iZettle
PayPal has reached an agreement to acquire Stockholm-based iZettle in an all-cash deal valued at $2.2 billion, it’s biggest ever transaction in a dynamic and fluctuating payments environment. The timing of the agreement comes just weeks after iZettle announced plans to float on Nasdaq Stockholm in a bid to raise $227 million at a valuation of $1.1 billion.
https://www.finextra.com/newsarticle/32123/paypal-agrees-22-billion-deal-for-izettle
PumaPay Raises $117M in Private Token Sale
PumaPay, a Cyprus-based blockchain company, has ended the private sale for its project by raising $117M.
PumaPay has developed a PullPayment Protocol, which aims to bring crypto payments in the daily life. Its innovative approach reverses the mechanisms of a transaction, enabling merchants to ‘pull’ crypto funds from their customers’ account, thus avoiding the drawbacks of the current banking systems, such as high transaction costs, the insecurity of chargebacks (reverse transactions) and associated fines, and the lack of customer anonymity.
http://www.finsmes.com/2018/05/pumapay-raises-117m-in-private-token-sale.html
Peltarion Raises €11M in Funding
Peltarion, a Stockholm, Sweden-based deep learning AI company, secured €11m in funding. Backers included FAM and EQT Ventures.
Peltarion provides a collaborative, graphical cloud platform for developing, managing and deploying deep learning systems at scale.
Founded in 2004, over 300 companies and organizations have used Peltarion’s AI technology including NASA, Tesla, General Electric, Dell, BMW, Deutsche Bank, Lloyds Banking Group, and the Universities of Harvard, MIT and Oxford.
http://www.finsmes.com/2018/05/peltarion-raises-e11m-in-funding.html
Goldman Sachs attacks the savings banks with online platform “Marcus
Goldman Sachs will enter the private customer business in Germany. After the USA and Great Britain, the online platform “Marcus” is to be rolled out in Germany as the third market.
With Marcus, the US investment bank is focusing for the first time in its 150-year history on the private customer business. The platform was launched in the USA in 2016, initially offering only consumer credit. Later, savings accounts with a relatively high-interest rate of 1.6 percent were also added.
7 Question with Frank Ackermann, Co-Founder of SDG Investments
1. Please tell us a bit about yourself, both at work and leisure.
My name is Frank Ackermann. I am the co-founder of SDG INVESTMENTS GmbH and AHP Capital Management GmbH, a financial service provider based in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. We are an experienced team with roots in investment banking, corporate finance and credit risk management. Leisure? if there is time, I play golf or drive a British Roadster around the countryside.
http://www.fintechforum.de/7-questions-with-frank-ackermann-co-founder-of-sdg-investments/
Is Compeon the “hidden champion” among the German Fintechs?
Research into a major “The digital revolution in SME banking” analysis shows that Compeon could a champion among German Fintechs. Compeon brokered mortgages amounting to more than EUR 100 million in the first quarter. Assuming moderate growth, the Düsseldorf-based Fintech could well reach 500 million euros or more for the year as a whole.
http://finanz-szene.de/ist-compeon-der-hidden-champion-unter-den-deutschen-fintechs/
Brickblock Raises €5M Series A To Disrupt Real-World Asset Trading And Investing
Blockchain startup Brickblock has raised €5 million in its Series A funding round. Led by Finch Capital, the funding will be used to accelerate BrickBlock’s ambition to “revolutionize the way real-world assets are bought and traded,” Brickblock’s CEO and co-founder Jakob Drzazga said.
Founded in 2017, Brickblock is building a smart contract platform to allow users to sell and invest in tokenized assets. The blockchain-based solution will allow “sellers,” including fund managers and real estate developers, to offer tokenized real-world assets like properties and investment funds.
Diversity meets Tech
Die Welle der Tech-Revolution hat die Arbeitswelt erfasst und erschließt uns neue Perspektiven. Im Rahmen einer Panel Diskussion (in englischer Sprache) möchten wir mit Ihnen die aktuellen Themen und Chancen diskutieren sowie Impulse für die eigene Organisation setzen.
Wann: 20. Juni 2018, ab 18 Uhr.
Wo: Deutsche Bank AG,
Taunusstraße 12, 60325 Frankfurt
http://www.proutatwork.de/en/event/diversity-meets-tech/
Deutsche Börse is working with leading FinTech companies to create a FinTech Acceleration Platform
The launch is targeted for the fourth quarter of 2018, subject to regulatory approval. The new platform will enable established financial industry players and new generation digital companies to distribute and leverage each other’s services resulting in new revenue opportunities. It will allow easy access to Deutsche Börse Group’s market and reference data as well as functional services via web based APIs.
Fintech conquers the third pillar
Neue Angebote können dabei hilfreich sein. Schon seit Jahren bieten sogenannte Robo-Advisors (Roboter-Berater) Anlegern die Möglichkeit, ihr Vermögen automatisiert und grundsätzlich ohne die Interaktion mit Bankmitarbeitern anzulegen…Solche Dienstleistungen kommen zunehmend infrage, wenn es um die Anlage von Vorsorgegeldern geht. Auch in der steuerbegünstigten Säule 3a nehmen die Angebote zu.https://www.nzz.ch/finanzen/vorsorgen-mit-der-pensionskasse/fintech-erobert-die-dritte-saeule-ld.1385056
Silicon Valley Bank to start in Frankfurt with Ex-Dt.-Bank-VP
The American Silicon Valley Bank expects to receive a banking license from the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority in May and to open its first German branch in Frankfurt in the coming weeks. The offices in Westend are already rented. The management team is already in place.
Deutsche Bank buys Indian Fintech
The German bank buys the Indian start-up Quantiguous Solutions, which specializes in IT interfaces. The German money institution wants to integrate by acquiring new applications and third-party products faster and better in their systems.
Change in leadership at Adyen
Alexa von Bismarck now responsible for the Germany business of the global payment service provider Adyen. As Country Manager, she replaces Volker Steinle, who will continue to serve in the company.